Above you can find a table specifically designed to help you compare the value of different casino welcome bonuses. The table uses a slots game to compare sign-up bonuses. Select your average bet size and the table will automatically re-order the bonuses to show which bonuses are most the best for you.

Casino Welcome and Sign-Up Bonus Ratings Explained

After years of watching thousands of gambling related websites either claim that their bonus was the “best” or that a specific operator’s bonus was “best” based on nothing more than opinion (often significantly influenced by which operator is paying the site most to say their bonus is best) we here at ThePOGG wanted to offer players something more than opinion. While different players will like and look for different things in the bonus, the basic truth is that how good a bonus is for all players is determined by the terms and conditions of the bonus. As such we’ve put together a system that simulates the actual value of the bonus to you based on a range of criteria and that actually takes into account all of the terms and conditions that alter the value of the bonus.

Instead of guessing or being paid to say a bonus is best, we simulate the bonus based on various criteria for a Low, Mid, High and Super High rolling player. In doing this we look to take into account all of the rules that are associated with the bonus. So if there’s a maximum allowed bet or a maximum allowed win, if there are extra complimentary spins or a No Deposit Bonus or if the bonus is sticky or if you are free to withdraw anytime as long as you only play with your deposited funds this has been taken into consideration.

What casino bonus criteria do you use?

There are certain criteria that are the same for all simulations. Firstly we use the Two Tier Simulator tool available at BeatingBonuses.com. This site is no longer as active as it used to be, but the tools and resources available there are still of a very high quality.

When simulating we always use the same game – Thunderstruck. This ensures that the simulations are fair and we are comparing apples to apples when you look at the values for the different bonuses. This table is intended for the everyday player and the majority of players playing online today choose to play slots games. We’ve chosen to use Thunderstruck as it is widely available and has a fairly average slots House Edge.

While our simulations are of a mathematical nature they are intended to offer the less mathematically minded a simple answer, with traffic lighted values so you can tell how good a bonus ranks at a glance.

We always use 10 million repetitions of the simulation. This means that the bonus is played 10 million times and the results are then averaged to give the figure we ultimately present. By ensuring we use such a large sample size we can guarantee a high reliability in the figure we present.

We always look to take account of any and all incentives that are provided up until the point of your first deposit. So if you receive complimentary spins or a No Deposit Bonus just for registering this will be taken account of. Note that we only go as far any incentives offered up until the first deposit – if there are further bonuses offered on subsequent deposits these are not considered. This makes our system different to the way many other operators and affiliates advertise the sign-up bonuses available as most sites choose to offer a welcome bonus package, comprised of various rewards received over varying numbers and sizes of deposits. We want you to know what you're going to get for a set deposit amount rather up-selling you with a package of bonuses that sounds like a bigger reward but doesn't take account of how much you'll have to deposit it claim it all. Please be aware of this difference when reviewing our bonus reports.

The criteria are different for the different roller sizes can vary slightly but are approximately as follows:

Low Roller : A low rolling player uses a deposit size of £€$30 and a bet size of £€$0.09/spin.

Mid Roller : A mid rolling player uses a deposit size of £€$50 and a bet size of £€$0.54/spin.

High Roller : A high rolling player uses a deposit size of between £€$100-150 and a bet size of between £€$4.95-6.50/spin.

Super High Roller : A super high rolling player uses a deposit size of between £€$151-1000 and a bet size of between £€$6.51-10/spin.

There are some exceptions to the above. Where the maximum bonus can be triggered with less than the deposit size used by the roller category, only the deposit needed to trigger the maximum bonus will be used (i.e. we don’t ever ‘over deposit’ for a bonus). There's no value to any player in deposit more than they need to get the maximum bonus and we would not encourage anyone to do this.

Is this bonus system perfect?

Absolutely not! To establish the mathematical value of any bonus requires definition of the exact approach taken. As every player will play in a slightly different way it’s not possible to give a single figure that is representative of all players. Nor do we feel that most players want to engage the necessary work to learn how to assess bonuses by themselves. As such we've looked to create four generalised categories that will approximately represent the majority of players, tailoring the simulations for each to what we feel are appropriate estimates of the bet sizes and deposit sizes these players are likely to make. This system is intended to give a reasonably accurate approximation of the comparative values of different bonuses based on the style of play that most closely approximates your own.

Every step you take away from the criteria the simulations use makes the figures less accurate for you. So if you choose a game other than Thunderstruck, the figures become less accurate. If you vary your bet size dramatically or choose a bet size that is significantly different from those we’ve chosen the system becomes less accurate. If you wager more than the wagering requirement the system become less accurate.

In short this system should be seen as a guide for comparison of different welcome offers, not an absolute statement regarding the welcome offer’s value. It is absolutely possible that based on your play that a bonus may be slightly better than some bonuses ranked slightly above it. However it is unlikely that the order the bonuses appear in would change significantly based on your play as long as you choose the category that most closely matches you playing style.

It should also be noted that this system does have some inherent flaws that we'll detail below:

Where complimentary spins are awarded, there is a difference in the value of complimentary spins to the player depending on whether the winnings of the complimentary spins are attached to a deposit (potentially associated with another bonus) or whether they are treated entirely independently of the deposit. For the most part this system treats them independently which potentially inflates their value slightly.

Bonuses that allow the player to play and withdraw without restriction as long as they are only using deposited funds are slightly disadvantaged by this system. The reason for this is that to establish the value of this type of bonus a pre-defined amount of pre-bonus play has to be considered to establish what the likelihood is of using the bonus. In these circumstances we use a target of 5x the deposit before the player would withdraw. The simulation assumes that the player will continue to play until they reach 5x their deposit (without having used the bonus) or they complete the wagering requirements associated with the bonus. This pre-bonus play would be equivalent to playing beyond the wagering requirement with a standard bonus. If you would choose a target lower than 5x your deposit the bonus will in most cases be slightly more valuable than we list and if you play to a higher target it will in most cases be less valuable than we list.

Our list of exclusive bonuses

At any given moment we have anywhere from 10 to 25 exclusive casino bonuses available for players. We only tend to have exclusives for the casinos we recommend the most and avoid listing offers of casinos that are listed in the 'needs work' categories and the same applies for not recommended and blacklisted casinos.

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